That should be a classic post.
Why? He’s obviously an idiot – absolutely no mention of mantraps. I call that criminally irresponsible.
Yeah, except it would end up in Pots as “fact”.
Oh but honey, it doesn’t even need to be posted to wind up in pots as fact.
Oh come on, people. The OP asked a question seeking helpful answers. And thanked people for legal advice and useful links. And how do some people respond? They attack the OP for having the audacity to ask the question in the first place. God forbid the OP point out these rude responses as unhelpful!
I’ve seen this before on Forumosa and I’m honestly quite appalled at how unfriendly this community can be. I’ve seen downright hostile responses to people who really don’t deserve it. Can we not be tactful with our responses? If you have nothing nice to say, then don’t say anything at all. This community should seek to be helpful and considerate, not a platform for seeing who can top the previous person with the most obnoxious response. It seems that some posters get offended at the drop of a hat, and decide that entitles them to be a complete asshat. We’re all in a similar boat here–some newer, some older–so why is there a need for such nastiness?
The OP asked if it is typical to withold a passport. The question has been beaten to death. Legal? Nope. Practiced? You betcha.
By the way, Hess Language School routinely holds the passports of its teachers as collateral. Unsuspecting FOBs willingly give it up because they have no idea they shouldn’t. I don’t doubt that this happens in many, many places. So give the OP a break for asking if this is “typical.”
I’m sure I will get a barrage of snide comments for this post. Save your effort and put it toward something constructive.
Snide? Maybe. I just don’t have a lot of empathy for privileged, supposedly “educated” whities who actually have the audacity to ask if it’s legal to keep someone’s passport. 
As if they didn’t know perfectly well!
On the other hand, I DO have a lot of sympathy for the poor fuckers from SEAsia who are so ruthlessly exploited here.
Unhelpful? Sure. Why the fuck would I be at all interested in helping such a person? I sure can’t think of any reason.
Yes. How else would we support our expat existence without them?
Auntie - another g & t please. And don’t be stingy with the ice this time.
Excellent post, StarrStruck. I agree with you completely. 
I disagree completely.
Me too. I emphatically do not wish to provide any kind of welcome to someone who would even consider the possibility of keeping their employee’s passport to stop them running away, and let’s not forget that’s exactly the reason the OP posted. How about someone, for example, “only asking, for heaven’s sake – no need to be SNIDE!” about a good place to find underage girls? Are we supposed to be “nice” to those people, too? After all, they’re only asking a question. And before you howl in protest, I’m not equating slavery or indentured servitude to kiddy fiddling. I’m sure MANY people don’t consider keeping someone captive against their will as being NEARLY as bad as that.
Sandman is forumosa’s grumpy watch dog (meaner than a junkyard dog); his barking might be excessive and there’s a bite now and again, but he almost always does a bloody good job of jumping on people who post shite. I’ve never seen him respond badly to a newbie who posts something interesting or well thought out.
While I feel that there is a certain unfair western cringe at having native servants, in this case the question about keeping someone’s passport is rather black and white. Wrong, wrong, wrong!
Audacity? Is that what you call it? I thought it was plain ugly.
Some questions deserve an unfriendly reply.
Practice what you preach. I’ss peak my mind, thank you.
I’d like to think that in this case we were helpful to and considerate of those poor folks who face slimey employers who seek to illegally possess their passports. I feel rather good about that.
It was the question that was obnoxious, not the responses.
That’s just ignorant and or stupid. I am, fortunately, not in the same boat as those poor folks who leave family to work for some slimeball who would illegally possess my passport and pay me nothing but peanuts. I strongly suspect that you also are not in the same boat as those poor folks who have bosses who retain possession of their passports. Or, are you a foreign laborer here?
Your point?
Wow… so, do you think that makes the Hess School English teachers’ circumstances equal to or otherwise similar to the situations in which the foreign laborers find themselves? Again, that’s simply astoundingly ignorant.
Nonsense. Such an inquiry deserves to be harshly criticized.
We all do what we can.
Some questions deserve an unfriendly reply.[/quote]For me, it’s not a question of deserving or not deserving. This means, I guess, that I disagree with both of you.
I have a very pragmatic stance on this. If I’m taking the time to address some remarks to someone, I want to do my best to ensure that those remarks will be understood, taken in, and considered. That means posting in such a manner that I avoid antagonising the intended reader.
Practice what you preach. I’ss peak my mind, thank you.[/quote]I think that there are various possible ways of “speaking one’s mind” and that some are more likely than others to lead to effective communication.
I’d like to think that in this case we were helpful to and considerate of those poor folks who face slimey employers who seek to illegally possess their passports.[/quote]Well, I hope so, too. Withholding passports is certainly not something that I would condone in any way. And it may indeed be that the forthright opinions in this thread made the OP think a bit more about what he posted.
I just want to make the general point that criticism is more likely to be received well (meaning that the recipient re-evaluates his/her views in the light of it) when it is constructive, not only in content but also in tone.
Just my opinion. It’s not intended as criticism of anyone.
It seems not everyone agrees.
Yes, it’s good that the OP was made aware but the issue is that it can be said in different ways, i.e. without being rude or insulting.
You don’t say? I’m amazed!
Good cop - Bad cop.
You don’t say? I’m amazed![/quote]
I don’t say what? Sometimes your responses are too cryptic for me. :s
Just to clarify: I stated an observation based on the responses by several posters.
Rascal, now and then I respond to you in a joking way… guess I’ll have to use winkies from now on.
I know… I was joking with you about the obviousness of your statement… that folks around here disagree on occassion is as obvious as razor blades on a firehouse pole.
Good cop - Bad cop.[/quote]I don’t think that analogy works. Nobody particularly likes being told what to do or think, whether by cops or by some guy on the Internet. But the real cops can use incentives and sanctions. All an “Internet bad cop” has is the threat of more harsh words and ridicule. From what I see, that often has an opposite effect from the one intended. The “bad guys” become more entrenched in their views as they attempt to repair their wounded pride.
I think you are altogether too optimistic about the chances of changing others’ viewpoints. It rarely happens, and on the few occasions it does, that’s usually as a result of measured, diplomatic exchanges rather than harshly worded, unfriendly criticism.
While I do agree that f.com can be smartass and unfriendly from time to time (often) I don’t find this post to be a case of it. Anyone who would treat their maid in such a way deserves the shit they get for mentioning it.